Everyone seemed to have forgotten how to breathe.
The bone-chilling wind from outside the city gates scattered the flames atop the train, leaving no trace of the figure in the blood-red coat... Under such scorching heat, nothing remained of a human body but ashes.
"Chen Ling... Chen Ling!!!" Zhao Yi, who had been dragged away by the enforcers, was red-eyed. Summoning strength from somewhere, he furiously shoved the enforcer in front of him aside and staggered toward the train!
He clawed at the swirling embers, only to grasp at empty air. Standing there dumbfounded, his silhouette radiated boundless confusion and desolation.
"Chief Chen!!"
"Let me go!! Let me go!!"
More and more survivors from District Three broke through the crowd, rushing to the train. When they saw the charred remnants on the roof, their bodies trembled uncontrollably...
Xu Chongguo turned and roared at the silent judges, "Chief Chen could have escaped alone! Yet he turned back and brought us into Aurora City!! I don’t understand all that talk about 'heretics'! But from start to finish, he never harmed a single one of us!
Now you’ve driven him to his death! Are you satisfied?! Is this the justice you wanted?!!"
"..."
"Fuck you all!! I’ll fight you to the death!!" Zhao Yi growled, rolling up his sleeves and charging at the five-striped judge. His eyes were bloodshot, like an enraged lion.
Zhao Yi’s father had died, and it was Chen Ling who had kept his promise to protect Zhao Yi all the way into Aurora City... No matter how much Zhao Yi loved butting heads with Chen Ling, deep down, he was grateful to him. Now, Aurora City had forced Chen Ling to his death right before their eyes—this shattered Zhao Yi completely.
Zhao Yi didn’t care about judges or enforcers. He threw a punch straight at the man’s face. The judge’s expression darkened. Though he initially wanted to strike back, he hesitated, then sidestepped and shoved Zhao Yi toward a group of enforcers.
"Take them all into... protective custody! Send them to the hospital for treatment!"
At the judge’s command, the enforcers swarmed forward, overwhelming the District Three survivors with sheer numbers and escorting them toward headquarters.
But even so, they couldn’t silence the crowd. Curses and accusations filled the streets, stirring the hearts of Aurora City’s citizens.
Since Chen Ling’s death, the citizens’ gazes had shifted. Their eyes now held doubt and anger when they looked at the judges. The flashes of magnesium lights continued, each photograph meticulously documenting everything that had happened.
"Sir... what now?" an enforcer whispered cautiously to the five-striped judge.
The judge, sensing the shift in the crowd’s mood, frowned and ordered, "The heretic has been eliminated. Withdraw for now!"
"What about the train?"
"Tow it to the warehouse. Seal it as evidence."
"Yes."
Under the judge’s orders, the barricades were swiftly dismantled, and the enforcers departed, leaving the crowd to argue among themselves.
On the city walls, Han Meng—still shackled—stared blankly at the charred marks on the train, frozen like a statue.
"You saw it yourself. He was a member of the Twilight Society. Any last words?" the five-striped judge tasked with escorting him asked slowly.
"Chen Ling..." Han Meng murmured. Then, snapping out of it, he shook his head. "No... The people from District Three were right. He shouldn’t have died."
"Han Meng, have you lost your mind?! The Twilight Society is on the highest-priority execution list across all domains! And you still want to defend them?"
"What of the Twilight Society? He did nothing wrong." Han Meng’s brow furrowed tightly. "Besides... now that I’m also a 'heretic'... what right do I have to judge them?"
The judge’s eyes widened. After a long pause, he sneered, "Fine... Just fine, Han Meng. When you stand before the tribunal, I hope you’ll have the guts to repeat those words... Hmph."
With that, he escorted Han Meng straight toward headquarters.
---
Meanwhile.
Atop a nearby building.
Bai Ye and Chu Muyun watched as the train was slowly towed away, both falling into silence.
After a long while, Chu Muyun adjusted his glasses thoughtfully and began scanning their surroundings, as if searching for something...
"What are you looking for?" Bai Ye couldn’t help but ask.
"Where did you hide him?"
"Who?"
"Chen Ling." Chu Muyun said matter-of-factly. "You must’ve stolen his position before he burned to death, right? Where is he? Those flames were intense—if he doesn’t get treated soon, there could be lasting damage..."
"..."
"What does your silence mean?"
"..." Bai Ye’s lips twitched slightly.
"...You did save him... right?" Chu Muyun ventured cautiously.
"Do you have some misunderstanding about the Path of the Thief?" Bai Ye rubbed his temples. "The Path of the Thief isn’t omnipotent. I can steal positions... but he was too far away, and the fire spread too fast. There was no time—"
"So you didn’t save him?!"
"Well..."
"Senior Bai Ye." Chu Muyun looked at him solemnly. "You do realize that if Chen Ling is really dead, the Red King will punish you... right?"
"Don’t panic. If that kid had actually died, Aurora City would’ve split into eight pieces by now—isn’t that what you said?" Bai Ye retorted. "But here we are, standing safe and sound. What does that tell you?"
Chu Muyun paused, stroking his chin. "You’re saying... he faked his death? But how?"
"No idea. That kid’s methods are beyond even me."
Chu Muyun’s frown deepened as he replayed the events in his mind, his gaze fixed on the slowly departing train.
"Chen Ling... self-igniting calamity... flames consuming flesh... vanishing into thin air... steam train... steam train..."
Chu Muyun froze.
"Did you figure it out?" Bai Ye asked, surprised.
"...I’m not sure." Chu Muyun adjusted his glasses. "But if Chen Ling truly faked his death, the only place he could be... is there."